Erik Weihenmayer

In 2001, Erik Weihenmayer began his ascent up the tallest mountain in the world, Mt. Everest. This was a journey that began very early in life when he was diagnosed with a genetic disorder that ultimately led to total blindness by the time Erik was 13. With the support of an amazing family, Erik never allowed his handicap to hold him back. In the wake of the sudden death of his mother, Erik and his family began taking treks into remote mountain areas to keep their lives intact. Soon Erik was taking on greater challenges, including rock climbing, while finishing college and starting his teaching career. While teaching, Erik met and fell in love with a colleague, Ellie. They married and moved to Denver. After conquering numerous major peaks, Erik decided to confront his biggest challenge yet -- Mount Everest, the world's highest peak. Along the journey, Erik and his team faced unbearably treacherous conditions and witnessed the frozen remains of those who had failed in similar attempts years earlier. Finally, Erik and his colleagues made it to the top of Mount Everest, quite literally the top of the world. ... more »

Will Smith

The 37 year-old Will Smith is one of few entertainers who has found great success in all three major forms of American media: music, television, and film. The cross-over superstar has produced hit singles on the music charts, starred in an unforgettable television sitcom, and taken on a wide range of acting roles in award-winning movies. Born on September 25, 1968, and raised in West Philadelphia, Willard Christopher Smith II was the second of four children raised in a middle-class family by parents who believed... ... more »

Elton John

Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight) is one of Britain and America's most successful pop stars, putting out award-winning hit songs since the early 1970s. The singer-songwriter was born on March 25, 1947, in Pinner, Middlesex, England. John was encouraged by his mother and grandmother to play the piano as a young child (starting at the age of four) and at the age of 11 he won a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music where he was thus educated. In the 1960s, while still at school... ... more »

Bette Midler

Bette Midler, named after Bette Davis, was born on December 1st, 1945 to parents Fred and Ruth Midler, a house painter and a homemaker. She was the third of four children, with a younger brother, Daniel, and two older sisters, Judith and Susan, named after Judy Garland and Susan Hayward. Their mother was a movie fanatic. Bette grew up in Honolulu, Hawaii where she graduated from Radford High School, Honolulu, in 1963. She went on to major in drama at the University of Honolulu ... more »

Celine Dion

Celine Dion was born on March 30, 1968, in the small town of Charlemagne, Quebec, the youngest of 14 children in a Roman Catholic family. Her family was highly musical and her mother encouraged her to sing from a very young age, noting her natural talent. At the age of 12, Dion was introduced to her life-long manager, Rene Angelil, who was arguably her most devoted and ardent supporter from then on. A year later, in 1981, her first record... ... more »

Shirin Ebadi

Shirin Ebadi was born in 1947 in Hamadan, Iran to parents Minu Yamini and Muhammad Ali Ebadi. She grew up in a middle-class family and was interested in the question of justice from a young age. Her father was one of the first generation of Iranians to study western-style law and became a professor of commercial laws. She has said that her family was always very interested in education and she has often credited her strength and perseverance to her parents ... more »